Ben Tshin

Excellent news for me: I’m heading to Yei to do a SWAT (Surface WAter Treatment) system installation. The charter leaves Malakal tomorrow morning!

I’m counting 7 weeks into my field rotation right now (6 weeks since Loki), and the only change of scenery has been Juba for 5 days. I’m getting tired of the heat (40-45C depending on the source), tired of the same rice and stew, and tired of sitting around without any work.

So Yei is way down south near the Uganda border. Apparently it’s very green and lush. I can’t wait. But the best part is that it won’t be so hot. I can’t imagine setting up the system in 40C heat, lugging barrels, gravel, sand, etc.

The 7 weeks of this field rotation have been almost an eternity. The usual rotation is 8 weeks, so I’m starting to feel my mind slip away. Unfortunately, some friends are visiting Uganda in April so I’m extending my pain for 11 weeks in the field. I hope I get back to Nairobi in one mind. I feel like Dieter Dengler in Rescue Dawn, slowly losing my mind while I imagine what delicious items fill the shelves in my imaginary fridge.

Last week was my first change of scenery since arriving in Sudan. I was one of 7 lucky contestants sent to basic security and safety training in Juba. Juba is the new capital of South Sudan and it’s literally a gold rush boom town. The gold rush here is from NGOs setting up offices all over Juba and bringing in Dollars, Euros, Pounds, etc. The longest tarmac road in South Sudan is also there, all 10km of it!

Medair has very good security policies, plans and protocols that everyone is drilled almost endlessly, since on arrival in any new location, you’re given a 30 minute security briefing. It’s good, it’s thorough, and most of all, it’s especially necessary in Sudan where fighting can break out between anyone and everyone at anytime. Ironically, I encountered my first security incident right before I got my security training. A bit of bad photographic timing, and I was seriously afraid of my near future.

That’s right, my first brush with the authorities. My intention was to capture the text on a sign: “Our Land, Our Peace, Our Oil, Our Liberty”. But picture taking apparently is not allowed from the tarmac. At least in Juba. I had done it in all the other airports (Loki, Malakal, Rumbek), and it was an innocent enough. But I looked to be some sort of Chinese agent. Chinese oil companies and by extension, Chinese people, are not looked highly upon here. He glared at me as he demanded my passport and details. It only got worse when he saw that I was missing a Sudanese entry stamp. I plead that I wasn’t checked my first time. Instead of explaining my circumstances, that only provoked a discussion (one-sided, albeit) about taking immigration and customs seriously.

Upon discovering that I was legitimately Canadian (ethnically Chinese, but not nationally), he let me off. I deleted all the pictures I had, and he was pleased that I at least took him seriously. Of course I did. I had heard stories firsthand of passports being confiscated for missing those entry stamps, and that was only part of my problem. I got out of it with a scare, but with some lessons that I took into my formal security training.

Security training was interesting. Lots of theory on the first day, but really “hands-on” the rest of the way. The best part is learning to deal with aggression. I wish I had that lesson 3 days earlier since it would’ve helped me deal with that official/guard/guy. It’s amazing how effective tension control works when you’re in high stress situations. There’s only three things: focus on your posture (show relaxed but confident body language), focus on your breathing (deep slow breathes from your belly) and recognizing and releasing any tension in your body.

Perhaps it’s only simulation, but when someone is yelling at you, manhandling you around, those three things might be a life saver. It might get someone else killed too.

We did a hostage scenario. At one point, the hostage taker asked for information, but hen no one volunteered information, one person was taken out to be shot (so we were told). Sadly, no one said anything. Me, I was too focused on my breathing, and making sure my arms didn’t go numb from holding them up. I thought that if I even spoke up that I’d be singled out for extra punishment. Even worse was when they choose me next. Again, no one said anything. You can run your imagination on what would’ve happened in real life.

It was only a simulation, but it got me thinking: “What would I do?” Would I try to speak out and save a colleague, to the risk of my own life? All hypothetical, but at least it got me thinking. I know how to placate someone with frustration aggression and someone using aggression as a tool for showing power, etc. I know all the security procedures, and what to do when things go bad. I just hope I’ll never have to use it.

This is a late update, but I’ve now been in Sudan for 1 week. I was lucky. I flew direct to Malakal with MAF instead of being stuck on the WFP flight that took the round-about way. I’m told to get used to the tiny Cessna Caravan because that’ll be my main mode of insertion and extraction at all the field sites. It’s a fun little plane especially sitting way at the back. Unfortunately, it gets a bit chilly since it’s not pressurized up at cruising altitude.

Immediately the next day after arriving, the WatSan team of 8 split into two teams to do a 3-day assessment of Malakal town. Malakal is the capital of Upper Nile state, but it’s situation is as dire as other parts of South Sudan. We saw people using fields for latrines, even going into (and being killed by) mine fields. Girls and mothers were drawing dirty, untreated water from the Nile. It’s sad to see such a situation in the 21st century.

I’m getting direct exposure to the heat of Sudan. The daily high has been constantly 35 Celsius and more. Nights start warm and get quite chilly by 3-4am. I only know this because I’m awoken by the donkeys braying, roosters cock-a-doodle-do-ing, the crickets playing their songs, and the slight chill. The Kenyan staff said that it started getting really hot the day before I arrived. But it’s only the start. They expect temperatures up to 40 and 50 Celsius before the rainy season comes. “You can’t tell the difference between 40 degrees and 50 degrees anyway, so it doesn’t really matter.”

Although I’m updating this blog more frequently than my newsletter I’m grabbing this update from the newsletter instead of paraphrasing it again.

Hi! Greetings from Africa!
I hope you are coping well with the recent snowstorms in Toronto. Here in Kenya, it’s the opposite problem: sun, heat and more sun. The daily high regularly reaches +35C, but I’ve been drinking plenty of water to adapt with the heat and the intense sun.

At the moment I am waiting in Lokichoggio in northern Kenya. Situated 30km from the Sudan border, Loki was established by the UN in the 1989 to serve as a logistical pit stop for humanitarian assistance to Sudan under Operation Lifeline Sudan (OLS). UNICEF, the World Food Program (WFP) and 40-other NGOs, including Medair, have offices here to support operations in South Sudan. As a result, a small town has sprung up around the airport and the UN compound.

Conditions in Loki are quite good. It’s much nicer than the expectations to which I signed up. There is a pretty good canteen with decent food, fresh fruit and vegetables. I’ve been told to stock up now before I head into Sudan where the food may come from tins. Unfortunately it’s a bit of a ghost town since 95% of NGOs have relocated into South Sudan after the CPA peace agreement was signed ending the war in 2004. The compound is littered with empty buildings of NGOs like Save the Children, Oxfam, etc. Altogether, I wouldn’t mind spending considerable time here, if only I had something to do.

Four weeks since leaving home I’ve been delayed once in Switzerland and once again here in Lokichoggio. Myself and another fresh colleague were hoping to get into Sudan as soon as possible. However, our second round of briefings have been postponed and put off and I’ve already seen different staff come through Lokichoggio on their way to Sudan. It is quite frustrating to be waiting here with nothing much to do.

Excitingly, I will finally be flying out to Malakal with MAF this coming Tuesday. I’m looking forward to seeing the real Sudan, instead of the veneer of Lokichoggio. The down side is that there is also no work to be done there either. My project is waiting for donor funding before we can go ahead with any work.

Please keep these things in your thoughts and prayers:

• an end to violence in Kenya which is weighing heavily on the Kenyan staff
• successful and quick donor funding for the WatSan project
• my faithfulness and fruitfulness amidst delays and boredom

in His service,
Ben

I’ve made it to Kenya. My first time in Africa, and it hasn’t been the shock I expected. Partly it’s the familiar faces and new friendly faces, and the sight of street reminiscent of Thailand and Indonesia. I’m fortunate that the Medair team house in Nairobi is in a nice neighbourhood. It’ll be great for R&R when I finally get it!

As the support, finance and logistics hub for Medair’s South Sudan project, all internationally recruited staff (IRS) arrive first in Nairobi. It’s almost endless briefings for admin, HR, logistics, finance, security, etc. The office here is busy, with lots of activity and lots of staff doing their different jobs. But the staff are still so gracious, generous and kind. I’m glad Nairobi will eventually become my home away from home since all my R&R time is spent here.

At Medair HQ in Switzerland, I started to get a slightly clearer picture of what work I would be doing. But now that I’m here, I now know what I’m actually doing in Sudan. My title is ERT [Emergency Response Team] WatSan Field Technician. I am joining a team of 8 other staff (mixed IRS and KRS) focused on responding to emergencies by providing water and sanitation. Together, we will fly to areas of immediate crisis and implement the emergency projects, which may be joined with Health/Medical. The implementations range from 2 to 8 weeks in length.

I’m really excited to jump in. I barely have 48 hours in Nairobi before flying north to Lokichoggio near the Sudan-Kenya border. I’ll fly from there on small charter planes to the ER sites. Good thing it’s a short time here since I might get a bit too comfortable in Nairobi where you can find almost everything: Italian pizza, broadband Wi-Fi internet, fresh fruit, etc. I’ll miss all that starting this afternoon in Lokichoggio.

I’ve arrived in Lausanne. Tired and exhausted. I didn’t expect to be so tired, but there was barely enough time to sleep on my flights. The flight from Toronto to London (YYZ-LHR) took only 6 hours. There was only 3-4 hours of napping after meal times and watching my obligatory movie.

Since departing from Canada I haven’t had much time to process the emotional, mental and spiritual weight. While I was waiting at the Toronto Airport about 15 friends and my family were on hand to send me off. There weren’t any tears, just good-bye hugs and last words of good safety, good luck and God’s blessings. It wasn’t until I stepped through security that the reality of the next year struck me. I won’t see any of those friends or family for a whole year. I didn’t realize how much my community meant to me, and how much I’ll miss them.

My entire journey to Switzerland was quite lonely. I was lugging all my bags including everything I need for the next year up and down the Geneva airport and through the railway stations. But it’s a relief to finally see familiar faces from my last visit when I attended Medair’s ROC. They aren’t my close friends or my family, but there are three who will be going to South Sudan with me. They will be my new community for the next year.

I hope to get more time to reflect on my own. This week will be super packed learning about what I’ll be doing in Sudan, and meeting all the HQ staff.